Palestinian Authority President Abbas leaves hospital

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was hospitalized Thursday and underwent a heart test but the results came back normal and but he was quickly discharged from the hospital.

Abbas, 81, was taken to a hospital in Ramallah in the West Bank after feeling tired and suffering chest pains.

“The president is doing a regular checkup in the hospital. The doctors said he is totally normal,” said Nabil Abu Rdeneh, Abbas’ spokesman, in a statement.

The Jerusalem Post reported that Abbas underwent a cardiac catheterization, where a tube is inserted into a blood vessel to examine the strength of his heart. A smoker with weight problems, Abbas has a history of health issues.

Abbas did not comment on his health after leaving the hospital but later told state-run Palestine TV that everything went well, according to the Associated Press.

“I had a catheterization. Everything is OK,” he said, according to AP. “I leave the hospital with good health. Thanks to the medical team of the hospital.”

He was elected in 2005 to lead what was then a single Palestinian government. In 2007, the government divided, with Abbas’ Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and the Hamas government in Gaza.